Reviews of "Vintage" Tabaróme (1875)
by Creed

Tabarome is a very good tobacco fragrance, though I wouldn't sell my soul for it. It has a warm, woody, but a little musty-smelling, tobacco accord for the first two hours, which is pretty enjoyable, though nothing amazing. The smell reminds me more of unsmoked cigarette tobacco than pipe tobacco, i.e. a light tobacco scent. Being a former smoker I can say that there is a difference in smell between tobaccos used in cigarettes and that meant for pipes. What makes Tabarome for me is the drydown - by hour three, the tobacco accord turns sweet, making Tabarome smell almost like a tobacco-tinged oriental fragrance. It's very nice. Longevity is good for me, about 6 to 8 hours.

Overall, I think Tabarome is quite good, and is one of Creed's better scents, but I don't think it lives up to all the hype and worship it gets (I think the whole hoopla by Creed about Winston Churchill wearing it is a bunch of baloney). If you love tobacco scents, then this is definitely worth seeking out if you can actually still find a bottle anymore.

Much more impressive than the dubious claim of having been made for George IV in 1875 (after all, the rake died in 1830) or worn by Churchill or Bogart, is the fact that this version of Tabarôme, whenever it may have actually been put together, perfectly evokes the late Victorian era and its slowly atrophying upper class, private club, leather chairs, Savile Row frocks and all.
This is certainly one of the more complex Creeds and the officially listed ingredients (bergamot, lime/clove, sandalwood, vetiver/leather, ambergris, tobacco leaves, tonka beans) cannot alone account for the overpowering effect that delights some and scares off others. To me, it seems, this pyramid completely omits the sweetness (save tonka) which I find characteristic of VT. In fact, I would go as far as to call it an occidental version of Fumerie Turque - less syrupy, not as harsh and smoky in the tobacco, but similar in blending tobacco, leather, florals, vanilla/tonka and perhaps beeswax or honey. I'm pretty sure there is tobacco blossom in VT, too, as well as jasmine, perhaps a little bit of rose and other florals. The clove&vetiver in the heart reminds me of Spiced Limes by Crown. There seems to be sweet-animalic castoreum here as well and orris provides a diffusive/powdery effect. The end result is a dense, sweet, yet also abrasively masculine powerhouse of a perfume which certainly will work best on an over-40 male in very formal attire. A superb scent and one of Creeds very finest.

astounding- my all time favorite scent ever. they just dont make them like this anymore (and they dont make this anymore either). my personal belief based on how hard it has been to obtain in recent years is that this hasnt actually been produced in at least a few years. ive heard it will be released every 5 years on a limited basis, ive been told it is available by writing to creed in paris, however the store in paris told me is is no longer available and will not be again-period. i have used many 8.4 oz. bottles and even a 16.8 oz size. ( i managed to locate a 1 liter size ) still i was able to find a couple of bottles after asking clerks who were willing to go digging around in stockrooms- and who found some dirty old, stained boxes with the bottles still sealed and intact! scent of this quality lasts many many years when stored properly and sometimes improperly as well, additionally i think this ages very, very well. -tobacco, ambergris, moss, and leather of several varities artfully combined which produces a very dark, haunting sort of undertone which no words can describe adequately that is very well loved by those who like it, with a sillage that is equally haunting. i have had people follow me around in shops many times while wearing this and always wonder why they dont ask what it is. that creed have stopped making this is to me the equivalent of chanel n.5 being discontinued. its unthinkable yet this is what has happened to 1875 tabarome. i would indeed consider this to be in many ways the mens equal to chanel n.5 totally unique to itself, and a timeless scent. creed has said they will be making available again 5 scents from their private collection as a replacement to those 5 who were removed, as well as a scent to commemorate their upcoming 250th. i just cannot imagine anything as a "replacement" to this. apparently the discontinuation was due to laws regarding ingredients. i just dont get it- and will add that if anyone was going to suffer from tabarome poisoining it would be me. the newer tabarome does not deserve to me mentioned in the same sentence as the original. if you have any of this and dont want it or find it somewhere in a shop make sure it gets a good home. sob

I do enjoy this very much: It is extremely aromatic, natural smelling. Balance is excellent, its very timelessly masculine and most importantly; the smell is very compelling.

Fresh tobacco leaves with green tea creates a wonderful, forest-like smell to it. I can imagine myself walking down the path in the woods; there is gentle breeze that carries whiffs of smell from the lake nearby.

Vintage Tabarome really does glue my nose to my wrist. This has slight similarities to Aramis Havana but the fact is that this is much better.
Behind the bitter green and slightly smoky smell there is an odd and completely intriguing nuance which I would call freshly balsamic medicinal; this tone smells somehow very luminous and mysterious. It is magic I say, magic.

I don’t think this is musty nor dated by any means. To me it is timeless, fresh, aromatic masculine. Perhaps minimalistic in ingredient wise, but it smells very rich and nuanced. Very easy to wear even in casual occasions.
If I should have to categorize this scent, it definitely would be a Fougere scent. Rich, aromatic fougere.

I haven’t been a Creed fan during the time of my hobby of fragrance, but Vintage Tabarome brings me down to my knees.

I read from somewhere that this Vintage Tabarome (Tabarome Private Collection) has been discontinued already in sometime ago; they said it was February 2009 when it was stopped from being made. I am not completely sure if this is the case for real, but it really might be true.
Vintage Tabarome is quite a treasure.

This stuff is awesome. I'm sure this will get its fair share of hate, but from me, it gets love. It's a formal scent; I'd feel most comfortable wearing this with a suit. But it's a big, rich, elegant, gentlemanly, aristocratic power scent.

Superb.
However, in the same vein in which some Basenoters argue that you have to be 'proud' or 'hold your head high' to wear a unisex niche frag which the unwashed masses would probably deem to be better suited to a female or a transvestite, I would likewise argue that you should rejoice in your manhood to wear this one. If this sounds too embarassing, if you feel that having balls is a subject for apology, then please stick to mainstream, bland and inoffensive scents.

Easy to see why Churchill and Bogart were fans. Not for the timid

This has been pulled from the Creed line up. It will be reintroduced every five years or so in a limited edition. I won't miss it. Its scent has been pirated over the decades by, among other things, mothballs and the pucks in men's urinals. I'm not kidding. The tobacco everyone seems to note doesn't hit my nose. I get a heavy, dense smell of some type of aperitif or digestif with a trace of camphor and a pronounced leather accord--leather as the scent exists in fragrance, not as it exists in leather products: a somewhat cloying, sweet smell present in Royal English Leather as well but in a much lighter way. While I suppose I could imagine Bogart and Churchill wearing this, I could more easily imagine a maiden aunt, the kind who wears the hat with the veil over the face, and a charm bracelet, and who tipples a little too much, wearing this. The update, which many seem appalled by, is, to my nose, far more alluring. "Vintage" Tabarome is an example of a fragrance that is out of fashion largely because it has been ripped off so much by the functional fragrance industry. A classic scent, a little too overripe for my taste, but a distinct and well-rendered frag.

My impression is that it doesn't compromise to fashion. Certainly an acquired taste that frankly doesn't care what anyone thinks. It grows on you as the days go by. But you wouldn't want to smell your forearm every couple of minuets - you might just get a headache. It demands respect. I wouldn't want to smell this on a woman, seems very masculine.

Wearing this is a great experience for as much as it smells like my pipe-smoking uncle who showed me my first copy of playboy. Once I got that thought out of my head, i could concentrate on the the strong tobacco leaf and pepper mixed with a lemon twist. The scent is much classier than my uncle was. It smells like power and class and should be worn that way. Any other way would cheapen it.

It works out really well and if I can ever find a bottle of it, I'll buy it. It seems creed has made this fragrance absurdly hard to obtain. I can't find it anywhere!

A very musty and in your face fragrance. Deserves the vintage title as it is very distinctive and mature. Its not really a wow fragrance as it took a while for me to warm to it, but this, along with Bulgari Notte it has a very reminiscent olfactory feel to it which is very pleasant. It seems like I've smelled it years ago but I don't quite know where. I would say you have to be 60+ to wear this with confidence but a very apt elegant fragrance for the older man.

Musty tobacco. Tobacco that's burly, even intimidating. Very heavy and off-putting if you don't know what to expect! Like Yatagan or Kouros, you need to know what you're sniffing before passing judgment. My judgment is this: old, musty and a little over the top. I'm afraid I do not like this. Perhaps I'm too immature or perhaps my nose just smells something completely different. I can appreciate the following of this scent. Manys positives here and elsewhere. The scent, on me, doesn't work. On the card, it smells fine and even from a distance it's good. Not on me.

This is one of the top 3 Creeds ever produced, along with Bois du Portugal and Acier Aluminium! I am undecided however on whether VT or Bois du Portugal takes first place, but perhaps they both can. Owning Vintage Tabarome is like owning a piece of history! It was originally commissioned for King George IV in 1875, not by Sir Winston Churchill (since he was an infant in 1875, though he did wear this later in his life). But the reason that this is a historical fragrance is that it is very much of its time; indeed, no company would dare to make a fragrance like VT in this modern day mass-market era of cheap, synthetic designer fragrances. Its potency and power lie in the simplicity of its composition and individual notes: green tea and pepper on top, with a heart of tobacco leaves over a base of ambergris. Today, fragrances pride themselves on having at least 10 (if not more) distinctive and individual notes, but one can barely detect any individual notes through all the synthetic chemical fireworks occurring. In Vintage Tabarome, one can clearly detect each of the four notes, bonding cohesively and effortlessly to create a warm and extremely masculine aura that truly and totally envelops the wearer. Tabarome offers a truly sublime experience each time I wear it. It is a very mature, older, elitist smell, so it certainly will not be to everyone's taste. As a young gentleman in my early 20s, I am sure some would say that I am too young to pull this off, but I care not. I wear fragrances above all for myself, which I believe is the golden rule; too often I hear other young people talk about bathing in their cologne in the hopes of 'scoring', with no independent thought going on in their heads. I am proud to be young and nonetheless able to appreciate such a mature and robust and elegant creation, and to wear it with the respect and integrity that this masterpiece deserves.

Originally commissioned for King George IV, and a favorite of Churchill and Bogart, Tabarome certainly has an impressive list of past patrons. Ignoring all that star hype and power, I can easily say that Tabarome is one of the most finely crafted fragrances I have experienced, with near perfect longevity and sillage.

Tabarome contains notes of tobacco leaves, green tea, pepper, and ambergris. It smells quite unusual for a tobacco fragrance in that it is quite fresh. Upon initial application, it exudes an uplifting and pleasant aura. It must be the green tea with some mint or lavender. A few seconds later, an exquisite tobacco note joins in. The tobacco is never heavy or overbearing, and never mutes the other notes. Instead, it flows alongside the pleasantly uplifting top notes to make this an extremely wearable and classy tobacco fragrance. Infact, this might even appeal to people who dont like tobacco - Creed has managed to to transform a (usually) powerful heady note into a note which works from all angles. The end result is a masterpiece which exudes power, grace and class.

Comparisons to "New" Tabarome: New Tabarome contains a prominent combo of ginger and tobacco. Compared to the Vintage formula, New Tabarome, while good, smells more brash and less crisp. If you want your tobacco well mixed and uplifting, Vintage is for you. For a dominant tobacco note (with some equally heady ginger filtered through a flacon of citrus and ambergris), "New" might be the way to go.

Rating: 9.5/10

This is not one for the young-uns. The smell is something like an old leather chair pulled out of an exclusive club, soaked with years of cigar smoke, and freshened occasionally with some sort of leather polishing cleaner. It is a tad dated smelling, and yet somehow still works, especially if you are going to be smoking cigars. Really, it's one of Creed's best. Give it some time to grow on you though.

Austere, classy, romantic, mature, knowledge.. all these words, and more, come to mind when wearing this. At first, the fragrance smells odd.. but as it changes, it becomes sweeter, less cloying, more like tobacco, with a bit of green tea and honey. Hands-down this is THE fragrance on which I get the most compliments. It's quite amazing something so old can still work in modern times. It's an amazing lemony, tobbaco, honey fragrance that reeks "gentleman has entered the room.." It's amazing, easily in my Top 3. I love this far more than the new version of Tabarome (call it what you will). Again, many many compliments on this fragrance.. even had a woman leave a restaurant lobby to come outside and ask me, "Pardon, may I ask what you are wearing????" Only to be worn with a formal attire, for the most special of occassions. I wish I could wear this all the time, but it's quite formal.. it's also just downright ENJOYABLE. I love this stuff.

Not a tobacco lover? Steer clear then, my friend, steer clear.

This is some masculine, tobacco-laden, commanding juice here, and far better than its modern Millesime namesake -- far better.

Definitely a try-before-you-buy kind of frag, though. I can't see but maybe one in ten liking this frag, especially in this age of aquatic hermaphrodites on the frag market.

I got a sample from a company online and am now waiting on a decant. I will be purchasing a flacon for the holidays. This is the scent for me. For a long time, I have been looking for a masculine scent that worked well with my skin type. I have had all sorts of issues in that most masculine specific scents smell sweet after the dry down.

This scent is not for everyone however. I do wear a suit to work on a daily basis, My job type image can be a little eccentric as an Architect. I am however,29 years of age, and tend to stick with things of a classic styling and taste. For most in their 20’s-30’s this will be too much of an old person scent I think and you should check out the newer tabarome offering as it is quite good also.

This is not a scent for those with a taste for frilly things in life. The dry down is smooth and smokey, with a bit of a saddle soup smell to it. There are no floral notes whatsoever. I do smell some of the tobacco that others speak of but I don’t personally get a strong note of it.

If classic tabarome conveys anything, I would say steadfastness, secure, grounded and reasoned. It may confer some elegance though I personally don’t see it. This is the suit, tie and parted hair (if you still have it).

The only thing I do have against it is that is sort of conveys patriarchal authority. It does remind me of an older fatherly type; Strong, demanding yet embracing and loving. We all have our own experiences so maybe it won’t feel that way to you.

The comments I have received are all positive thus far.

This is my new signature scent. I don’t recommend wearing it with shorts and a tee shirt, it would come across all wrong. But if old values, classiness, and patriarchal authority is what you are looking for, you just may have found it.

For a while, I just didn't understand the Tabaromes (both Vintage and Millesime). Then one night I sat down to watch "The Remains of the Day". As I was drawn into the period of the film, I heard a voice in my head and it said "hey, go put some Tabarome on. Vintage on the back of your right hand and Millesime on your left."

So I did, and as I watched the movie my experience was enormously enhanced by these two fragrances. I found myself sniffing my right hand during some of the scenes where the old order was represented-- the scenes with the master of the house in his study, redolent with the smell of something like Vintage Tabarome. Then, during the scenes with Christopher Reeve's character representing the new order, I found myself sniffing the Tabarome Millesime on the left hand.

Last night I watched another Merchant/Ivory film, "Howard's End" and again, not long into the film I realized that again my Tabaromes would be needed to add to the experience.

At first I thought Vintage Tab and New Tab were nothing alike. True, initially in an A/B test they are worlds apart. Funny though, as time goes on, their direct lineage becomes apparent. Vintage Tab is a bone dry, somewhat stuffy tobacco leaf scent, with a leathery feeling to it. New Tab is a fresher, lighter, less dry update on the original. Both scents are uncompromising. Neither one is something to wear to impress the ladies, though the ladies might love you despite that-- for having the character to wear something that is such an unapologetical throwback to patriarchal times when it was a "man's world."

I've become a believer in Tabarome Millesime, and now I'm sold on Vintage Tabarome as well. I wish it would be available in 2.5 oz bottles-- there's no way I could ever use a whole flask of this. You have to be careful because it can be intoxicating-- too many sniffs of the wrist and you'll get that feeling of smoking too many cigars. It's a bit out of time, unless you're wearing a suit-- in which case, it's perfect and it makes everyone else in the room come across like shabbily dressed embodiments of the wrong time and place.

A fragrance like Tabarome makes you realize it's great to be a man!

Vintage Tabarome is one of those much-admired scents that I approach with a certain degree of trepidation. Its reputation looms so large that I fear disappointment. Having now worn it, I can't say that I like it, but I do admire it, and I certainly understand what all the fuss is about. Like some other early twentieth century landmarks, including Mitsouko, Knize Ten, and Tabac Blond, Tabarome is utterly uncompromising. Nowhere does it bow to "prettiness." This is Churchills's cigar, smoked in a leather paneled gentlemens' club. It's "dated," but that's not necessarily a pejorative. It's just that Tabarome speaks of a particular time, milieu, and social class. I find it hard to wear myself - it makes me feel stuffy and even a bit dowdy, but I must admit the quality is there.

Okay, I'll say it...God's personal cologne. (Assuming God's a guy :') )

Vintage Tabarome has wonderfully rich accords—potent and classic. I don’t believe this one has an equal among the great power scents of the world. Power, and yet it is remarkably suave and refined. Though I don’t like strong leather in a fragrance, I find the leather in VT is rich and virile and fulfilling. The top and middle accords of leather, tea, and pepper are warmly smooth, deep, and lush, and I would be content to sniff this accord for hours. I like VT even better when the tobacco moves in. To my nose, the real power of the fragrance centers on the extraordinary tobacco note—it is everything I’ve heard it was and more. I tend to perceive the tobacco and the ambergris together, and it is certainly a combination made in masculine heaven. Traditional and masculine, powerful and refined, it’s one of a kind...

vintage Tabarome is the epitomy of a MASCULINE product for MEN. It lasts very well and does'nt smell "pretty" as a very great number of modern products do.Two big thumbs up from the spiceman!!

Very formal. very excellent. This is a soapy, old school tobacco reminiscent of gentlemens clubs and ash from expensive cigars.

It is nothing like new tabarome which smells more of unsmoked tobacco leaves and is a much warmer and somewhat less subtle composition, though also very fine.

one of the most powerfull and classy.
only should be worn on special occasion's. if you are younger than 40 years old, get the new tabarome.

Perhaps one of the greatest ever. So classy and powerful. I feel like I could command the attention of any room while wearing this. The open is striking - like a bracing wind on a cold winter day. An icy sweet and sour grips your lungs in a pleasant and bracing way. As the dry down begins, some of the sweetness goes away as the tobacco notes make thier entrance. Then like a well coreographed dance number the sweet notes return and the finish is like the climax of a fine play - begging for an encore! Thumbs up all the way.

PS. The open almost smells like a sweet rum flavored cuban cigar.

Tabarome - I love it !

I had to laugh when I read a review in which someone complained that it only lasted a few hours. I put a couple of tiny drops on the back of my hand at 9 in the morning, it's now 7:00 p.m., I've washed my hands twice, and I still can't get rid of it. I find it nauseatingly and headache-provoking intense. Musty. I agree with the references to "old money," -- literally -- like money that's been in a wet basement for a couple of years. For a rich, earthy selection from Creed I much prefer Royal English Leather. Much more subtle. The sort of stuff you want to smell to try to figure out. There's nothing to figure out with Taborome. You can't escape it. No way I'd subject others to this in a closed room.

A classic for only the most sophisticated set. Not an everyday fragrance but the best boardroom scent on the block bar none. Paper chase in a bottle. It just murders new tabarome. New tabarome is just a modern version with stronger tobacco.

A wonderful scent, just not on me. Develops into a strange soapy drydown that turns bitter on my skin. A totally different scent than the later Tabarome, i wish it worked better for me.

Absolute perfection. Leather, horses, dead Indians, and the best tobacco you can find. Anachronistic and astounding. The drydown is powerfully masculine, almost reminiscent of Kouros' incense note. I'm about 20 years too young to wear this. Maybe I'll be able to afford it by then.

This is my second favorite tobacco scent after Havana. It starts off a little pungent and strong, but later develops into a semi-sweet base. I don't get much of the Creed house note during the drydown, but that's not a bad thing. This is a great scent that smells mysterious and sexy. It strikes me as a bit formal/semi-formal so I wouldn't recommend wearing this with jeans and sneakers. It would be useful for romantic occassions though. Too bad it's not available in a 125 ml bottle like the other Creeds.

Rich, heady, and quite potent, this is one for the distinguished gentleman, he who wants to sit upright in that board room with the long polished dark wood table, with the art-deco decor. For the cigar addict who'd like to take a whiff of a Cuban but can't smoke in the office.

Love this scent on men but I must confess that I love it more on myself. Musky leathery dry-down makes it all the more sexy. Love to wear this with black leather, underneath a magenta velvet smoking jacket or under nothing at all. It's that sensual...

This scent makes me think of cigar smoke, gentlemen's clubs, leather club chairs, scotch on the rocks. It's the smell of wealth and taste and power. Extraordinarily evocotive of another era. Unquestionably masculine.

Oh I do like this. My first impression was of a fairly rare incense, Gulnaz. Well, it might have leather notes, but I get a dry, warm, smoky incense.

Smells like old mothballs, or some sort of cleaning agent. Feel that is it a bit 'of its time'.

Vintage Tabarome is worlds better than Tabarome Millsime. VT is a luxurious and heady tobacco fragrance. It’s pretty stuffy, and pretty difficult to wear on a regular basis, but it’s a wonderful formal fragrance. I prefer Bois du Portugal as far as vintage Creeds go, but this Creed is the epitome of confidence and class.

The definitive, classic fragrance for a man unconcerned with following trends. There are no sweet, floral, or fresh notes here--just a smooth, dark, and confident aura that smells clean and musky all at once. A masterpiece that withstands the test of time.

fabulous powerful masculine scent - a thick veil of smoke,a grandeur

This was the lecture that the Baron de Charlus gave to the Society of Perfumes in Paris on the subject of Tabarome Original: 'A scent of the inner sanctum, a soft grey lucidity, elusive delicacy of mauve, complex rumours of a brown and silver background. It whispers an enigmatic invitation. If you prefer a musical analogy: a melody slightly sad, yet gentle and kindly, and filled with an inner force and conviction. Let us pause at the turning of the stair and savour this wise old scent, breathing in its impossible charm and unutterable distinction.'

Green tea, ambergris, pepper and tobacco but blended so well all you are left with is an amazing and quirky scent. It is definately not for everyone. This surrounds one in a soft and confident aura. It's simultaneously gentle, confident, egotistical and powerful. Because of this it is also sensual. I find it works weel in the heat and cold equally well.

My second untried and unkown Creed purchase was of Original Tabarome in the spring of 2002. A favorite of Sir Winston Churchill and Humphrey Bogart, it was trumpeted as the scent of choice for the "power elite." Indeed, few fragrances have heralded as much praise over the course of 100+ years since Creed introduced it as Tabarome ... and for fine reasons. Original Tabarome's top notes of musk and tobacco from Havana and Virginia weave into its underlying ginger, amber, santal and patchouli, creating a heavier scent than most of Creed's distinguished, historic cache of more than 200 original fragrances. It lasts; oh, how it lasts! Few scents make such a powerful impression or go the miles as Original Tabarome. And few are as strikingly, affectively masculine that you can almost smell the blend of sweat and leather in the curing tobacco leaves from Cuba and Virginia that empower its enduring, ultra original chemistry. For me, this is another essential in my collection of all-time favorite fragrances.

A thick, almost resinous fragrance that wreaks of old money and smokey libraries. A classic to be sure, but NOT an everyday scent.